The War on Crime as Hegemonic Strategy: A Neo-Marxian Theory of the New Punitiveness in U.S. Criminal Justice Policy

Employment and Exile: U.S. Criminal Deportations, 1908–2005

“…13 In short, IRCA set in motion a wave of punitive legislation that practically eliminated discretionary relief and, we suggest, increased the frequency of criminal deportations irrespective of labor market conditions. This latter spate of legislative activity around deportation parallels a more general and monumental shift in American crime control policy and strategy during this same period, which Beckett and Sasson (2000) identify as the "security state" and Feeley and Simon (1992) labeled "the new penology." Among the distinct features of this era were a new focus on risk avoidance, a greater emphasis on confinement and incapacitation, and a penal policy oriented to the efficient management of broad groups deemed threatening by the public and politicians (Feeley and Simon 1992;Garland 2001).…”

“…Apart from race and ethnicity, punishment is an inherently political affair, a theme running through Foucault (1977) and more recent statements by Beckett and Sasson (2000), Garland (2001), and Simon (2007). All challenge researchers to question the meaning and sources of political power and who is served by the expanding "carceral archipelago" of disciplinary control.…”

“…Although contemporary empirical work often reports a positive association between political conservatism and punishment (Sutton 2000; Carmichael 2001, 2002), U.S. incarceration rates ascended for 35 years-regardless of whether Democrats or Republicans held sway. Such patterns suggest that imprisonment, and perhaps banishment as well, today reflects a broad hegemonic "security" project as much as any given partisan environment (Beckett and Sasson 2000). The former directs attention to the general rise in punishment, whereas the latter draws a tighter link between political conservatism and harsh punishment.…”

“…Immigration judges are charged with exercising independent judgment and discretion but are appointed by the attorney general and administratively located within the Department of Justice. Beckett and Sasson (2000) also draw on Gramsci in advancing a related argument about discourse and punitiveness, describing the shift from the welfare state to the "security state" as a hegemonic project of the ruling class. By this view, representatives of the capitalist class seek popular consent through cultural and ideological mechanisms, rather than coercion, shaping public opinion via mass media and educational institutions.…”

“…Finally, prior work has not clearly established why labor markets matter. We will draw on Melossi (1985Melossi ( , 2008 and Beckett and Sasson (2000) to empirically assess whether a changing discourse on three related factors-immigration, labor, and employmentpartly mediates the association between deportation and economic conditions.…”